The Seduction Game

Bad idea. By the time the bus pulled up alongside her, Kate was hot and frazzled and had to spend far too long rooting around in the bottom of her purse for enough change to pay for her ticket. More than one other passenger grumbled as she walked past them to find a seat and Kate responded by ignoring them all, pulling out her Android, and tapping the Fruit Ninja app. By the time she sat down, the game had loaded and Kate settled back on the very hard seat to play out the journey.

“You should take your change out before you get on.” This came from a large woman sitting across from her, holding a bag of what Kate suspected, based purely on the smell, was cheese.

Kate gave it—and the woman—as friendly a smile as she could manage and nodded. “I guess I should.”

“It’s rude to hold other people up.”

Just her luck to choose the seat next to one of those passengers. “Uh-huh.”

“And to ignore your elders.”

Kate sighed and swiped a large pineapple. She had no deep desire to sit playing games but she was hot and she was nervously excited—yes, the nerves had finally tag teamed the excitement—and she was in no mood for conversation. She wanted to lose herself in something and this was the best thing.

“I’m not ignoring you,” she said as a bomb exploded on screen. “I’m busy.” She waved her Android and the cheese-bearing woman gave her a narrow-eyed look.

“You young people these days. You’ve always got something you’re fiddling around with. A tablet, a cell, a laptop, an iPod plugged into your ears. My granddaughter is always busy. Always doing something. I don’t know why you can’t just pause.”

“Some of us do.”

“Not many.”

Kate nodded but did not reply and after a moment the woman—finally getting the hint—turned away and started a conversation with some poor young man who looked about as comfortable as Kate had been. Part of her couldn’t help but think she was being a little rude and on any other day she’d have chatted, without even thinking about it. Socially awkward she might be, but Kate’s parents had brought her up to have manners and practically ignoring someone would have gotten her a severe punishment from them. But then…she sighed and eyed the oranges now flashing across her little screen. She was so jumpy, about to take such a huge step, and surely she should get a little slack on those grounds? After all, it was not every day that she confessed her feelings.

Kate shifted on her chair and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. Perhaps confessing her feelings was putting it too strongly? It wasn’t like she was going to stride into Will’s office, drape herself across his desk, and pledge her eternal devotion. Only she knew that by agreeing to sell her building, that was damn near what she was doing. She’d fought him every step of the way, held out for months, and now, “the morning after,” and she was ready to put pen to the dotted line.

It practically shrieked smitten.

She was, so what could she do? Nothing but accept it and let the cookie crumbs fall where they may.

Time to win the game.

A smile spread across her face and Kate had no doubt it was one of the goofiest smiles ever. She didn’t even care. She embraced the excitement, accepted the nerves, and settled in for the journey. Even the smell of the cheese coming from her bus companion didn’t bother her anymore. How could it? She was about to cement things with the man she was falling for.

Nothing could bring her down today. Nothing.





Chapter Twenty-One


Even though it was a Sunday morning, Chris was in the office. Just as Will had known he would be. Jen had called him only a few days ago to bemoan the fact that her husband had started working weekends and he, Will, had promised to look into it.

That had been a lie.

Instead he’d headed round to Jen’s first thing to check whether Chris was indeed at work and kept his visit as short as possible the moment he’d confirmed that his brother-in-law was out—though not as short as he’d have liked because Jen had needed help with household stuff and Will hadn’t been able to say no.

He’d hurried to the office as soon as he could, because he wanted to talk to Chris on a day when no one else would be around. It was crucial to his plan, a plan that had come to Will as he’d settled back in bed with Kate in the early hours of the morning, and though he didn’t like it, he was fairly certain it would work.

Lay a trap and let Chris’s arrogance lead him right in.

It was the only option. Last night had changed everything. Because whatever Chris had done during the time Will had been away in London had caused Kate months of tension and worry. His Kate. The woman whose virginity he’d been gifted. The woman he’d left all sleepy-eyed and tousled just a couple of hours ago. Will couldn’t bear the idea of her being upset again, knew he would do whatever it took to ensure that didn’t happen, and that meant dealing with Chris once and for all. Hell, it even meant sacrificing being snuggled up in bed next to Katie. Basking in the glow of their first morning after.

Angry that he was being deprived of those moments and that his brother-in-law had been so stupid as to start a development before all parties were in agreement, Will strode into the office. Frustration that all the paper trails he’d checked gave him no clue why thrummed alongside the dual angers.

None of it put Will in a good frame of mind.

Fact was, nothing stood out as being wrong and yet something was. Will knew it wasn’t as simple as just bullying Kate. Was fucking certain of it. No way had Chris put so much into the development simply to prove himself. It didn’t add up. The man had had plenty of chances before and had never taken them. No, Will was certain there was something else going on and it was finally time to find out what.

He could leave it no longer.

Their office was open plan, something Will had insisted on many years ago. It gave everyone a chance to interact, to bounce ideas off each other, and it stopped that whole culture of bosses who sat behind closed doors, while those in lower pay grades sweated away in their cubes.

Chris glanced up from his desk as Will entered and Will gave him a strained sort of smile, holding up the espressos and a bag of pastries he’d grabbed from his favorite coffee shop. “Didn’t expect you to be here. Good job I did a double order.”

Chris returned the smile with his own lazy grin and closed his laptop lid. That action put Will’s senses on alert, because what the hell was Chris trying to hide? He placed the coffees and pastries on Chris’s desk, trying to keep his temper in check.

“Did you need me for something?” Chris asked.

“No,” Will said. “I’m just planning on going through some papers. Why the hell are you here on a Sunday?”

Chris shrugged. “I have some work I wanted to get done. And you know what it’s like at my place. Kids shrieking everywhere. Jen clattering about. Makes sense to do it here where I can have some peace and quiet.”

Abruptly, Will imagined Kate installed in his home. To hear her pattering about, or clicking away on her computer…the prospect filled him with a deep longing he could not quantify.

“Are you working on The Risings?” Will asked, helping himself to a coffee.

Chris nodded slowly. “I am.”

“Speaking of…” He passed Chris an espresso and one of the pastries Will knew he liked before taking a seat on the edge of his desk. Chris took them with a slightly wary look in his eyes, the lazy smile not extending all the way there. Will took a deep breath, aware that he was going to have to up his game if he wanted his plan to work. “Kate is on the verge of selling.”